Author's Note: I'm up at 4:17AM not from illness insomnia but from excitement insomnia. Every year, my big sister and our friends have this huge kickass get together and it's today! Well, tonight. It's going to be full of WIN so I'm going to do my updating now.

Okay, in response to 2 well founded concerns: A. Jai's jealousy will increase but only in relation to the Op and his own regrets. He isn't going to get Auggie or Annie hurt/dead. Well, he had been but…hey, I didn't make him the bad guy. LOL! And 2: I haven't completely given up on A-Squared getting together. Canon or not, I never ditch my ships. Ever. (Just look at my HOUSE and In Plain Sight stuff for proof and don't even get me started on Harry Potter. H/Hr FTW!)

What the last A/N was about was resignation that TPTB were going to throw a bunch of other people into the batter for ratings instead of using common freakin' sense and putting the "Hey, that could actually work before and after the clothes come off" couple together. Like I mentioned last time, it's become a USA network formula.

Disclaimer: "Honestly, it's not mine!"

"Okay, there's a small switch on there. I need you to move it to the left and then put this over it. It's a waterproof seal in case our Paulie here gets knocked into the pool."

Jai barely suppressed a shiver of pleasure as her fingertips brushed against his skin as she did what Auggie instructed. The wire was tiny but it packed a punch. It would be wirelessly connected to a laptop, which would be connected to Base. Carmine and Giovanni would be in the van with them to provide translation for Russo's diction and Annie was there for CIA back up. They'd meet the FBI back up at the safehouse before setting out.

"Done. Now, what?"

"Now, you come here and let me show you how to test it."

Instead of a business suit or Guidette wear, Annie had on a black tee with airbrushed blue and green dragonflies all over it, Auggie's black hoodie, jeans with sky blue detail, and a pair of tightly tied black canvas sneakers. Seizing the opportunity, his eyes drifted to her taut ass while she leaned forward to look at the monitor closer.

"Okay, Jai. Say something witty." Auggie urged with semi-friendliness.

"Your fly's open." he replied darkly.

"Yes it is. Makes for easy access. Okay, you're good to go."

Annie lightly boxed him on the back of his mop top and dismissed, "Head on out, Jai. We'll touch base later. Aug, zip your pants."

"Do I have to?"

"Yes, Chloe and Katia. You have to." she chuckled.

"Yes, Aunt Annie…"

Jai closed the door behind him and let out a ragged sigh as he made his way to his company Beamer. Staying on this Op was getting more difficult by the day, not for professional reasons but for the personal. Hearing and watching Annie and Auggie be together was like being repeatedly punched in the gut.

The strongest relationship he had seen before them had been the one between his maternal grandparents. They had met each other at age 6 and it had been a wrap. They had defied everything, including arranged marriages to other people, to be together and they had remained that way until his grandfather passed away at the age of 90 shortly before he left for the Farm. A week later, his grandmother was gone too from a broken heart. An image of an elderly Annie holding an elderly Auggie's hand, surrounded by family made the jealousy rise to a fever pitch…

Instead of doubling back and punching Auggie out (or attempting to), he channeled all the hurt and the rage into Paulie Giametta.

Later, much later on, in front of a board of inquiry, they would say that it was his best role he had ever taken on.

/

"Oh, yeah. They mean business. They broke out the Big Gun. Russo is the best they got. If he's assigned to ice ya, then you're as good as it…"

"Stow that kinda of talk, soldier boy! You ain't dyin' until I fuck ya to death when we're 104!"

Annie bit back a laugh as Carmine flushed beetroot and Gio smirked dirtily at him as she filed her nails in the van. As a rule Annie tried not to get too attached to the people she had to help during Ops but she couldn't help it this time. Once you got past all the clichés and the different backgrounds, she was looking at her and Auggie. Judging by the faint smile on his face, he was thinking the same thing…

"Yes'm. Okay, Russo's all in, even without the cash. Dude's a sick fucker. He likes killin' for the sake of it. Just how much your boy chugs the Haterade will show just how brutal he'll be...or would be. Blind or not, Auggie, I think you could whup the old man's ass good enough to get back up."

"He could." Annie confirmed with not just girlfriend loyalty but from hand to hand experience with him on the mats. Ouch…

"Aw, Lucy…you're makin' me blush…"

"Ooh, damn. I don't some of that animosity's fake. Whoo…" Gio remarked as Jai launched into quite the creative tirade against William.

"Jai and I disagree on a fundamental level."

"Meaning that Auggie hates the hell out of him for some obscure reason he won't tell me about…"

"It's classified or I would."

"…and Jai's not too friendly with him either. He's channeling it into the role but if he doesn't shut his damned mouth, I'll knock out all of his teeth…" Annie growled as Wilcox got to a climax, involving Auggie's lack of sight, their alleged sex life and her "tight little body".

"I love it when you get all feisty…okay, it sounds like it's winding down." Auggie mused as the men broke into laughter.

"Yup. It's on. Russo's got the money. Y'all got 2 days to come up with something or your girl here will need a new Ethel." Carm surmised, making Annie grit her teeth and snarl lowly.

Oh, that was so not happening. Auggie was not dying, not with her around! Russo wouldn't lay a finger on her man or she'd shoot his head off…and not the one with ears!